Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev has ordered an end to the practice of faking progress in cities and towns by sweeping up streets and repainting fences and old buildings ahead of his visits, the president’s press office said on April 17.

The custom is not uncommon in post-Soviet countries, but is especially prevalent in Central Asia, including in neighbouring Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. Under Mirziyoyev’s late predecessor, Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan was no exception to this tradition—by ending it, Mirziyoyev has taken yet another step forward in reforming the country. Up to now, he has targeted the practice of maintaining facades for investors achieved by putting out incorrect data on economic growth and development.  

In September, the country’s statistics office began to report data that far more accurately reflect the Central Asian nation’s realities. The Uzbek president has also improved media freedoms within the country, allowing for more transparency, though criticisms of the current regime’s treatment of dissidents still persists.

On April 17, the president ordered the cabinet to ban the forced mobilisation of teachers, nurses, doctors and other public sector workers for “urban improvement works”, noting that offenders would face criminal charges, according to Mirziyoyev’s spokesman Komil Allamjonov said.

Uzbek prosecutors will now investigate cases of more elaborate window dressing by regional and district authorities, which include fake greenhouses and non-existent online registration systems.

“Officials who organise window dressing or fail to prevent such cases will be severely punished,” Allamjonov told reporters.